Andy Schotz, chair @spjregion2EmailBio (click to expand)
Andy Schotz was a city editor for The Frederick News-Post in Frederick, Md., for about 19 months until he was laid off on April 17, 2017.

He has been an SPJ member since 2002 and has held various positions on the Washington, D.C., Pro chapter board, including three consecutive one-year terms as president.

He served on the SPJ Ethics Committee from 2004 to 2011, including three years as chairman.

Schotz ran unsuccessfully for at-large director on the national SPJ board in 2012. The following year, he ran unopposed for Region 2 director.

He is a frequent SPJ contest judge (D.C. Pro Dateline Awards, SDX, Mark of Excellence, Green Eyeshade, high school essay) and has twice coordinated Region 2's Mark of Excellence contest.

He joined the SPJ Awards & Honors Committee in 2013 and helped work on a national survey seeking feedback about the MOE contest. He is currently the committee's chairman.

Before joining The Frederick News-Post in 2015, he was an editor at The Gazette, a chain of weekly papers, in Montgomery County, Md. He was there for almost 2 1/2 years before The Gazette folded in June 2015.

Schotz worked for eight years as a reporter and editor at The Altamont Enterprise, a weekly paper in upstate New York, then 13 years as a reporter for The Herald-Mail, a daily paper in Hagerstown, Md.

He is on the board of directors of the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors.

2002 Sigma Delta Chi Award Honorees

Newspaper/Wire Services

Deadline Reporting (circulation of 100,000 or greater): “D.C. Sniper coverage,” Staff of The Seattle Times. In-depth coverage of the arrests of suspects in the Beltway Sniper case.

Deadline Reporting (circulation of less than 100,000): “Tragedy on the Ice,” Staff of The Eagle-Tribune in North Andover, Mass. Breaking coverage of the drowning of four boys in the Merrimack River.

Non-Deadline Reporting (circulation of 100,000 or greater): “All Nine Alive,” Pittsburgh (Pa.) Post-Gazette All Nine Alive Team. Coverage of the rescue of nine miners trapped underground for three days in the Quecreek Mine.

Non-Deadline Reporting (circulation of less than 100,000): “Breaking the Silence,” Catherine Ann Velasco of The Herald News in Joliet, Ill. A four-part series on teen-age suicide.

Investigative Reporting (circulation of 100,000 or greater): “Crisis in the Catholic Church,” Staff of The Boston Globe. Coverage of sexual abuse by priests and the resulting impact on the Roman Catholic Church.

Investigative Reporting (circulation of less than 100,000): “Bitter Harvest,” Mike Lee of the Tri-City Herald in Kennewick, Wash. Investigation of a series of deaths, environmental damage and accidents that were traced back to the largest organic farm in Washington state.

Feature Writing (circulation of 100,000 or greater): “Kaden Cook,” Jeff Seidel of the Detroit Free Press. Serial narrative about a family’s angst over their child’s heart condition and his need for a transplant.

Feature Writing (circulation of less than 100,000): “Day Zero,” Todd C. Frankel of The Herald in Everett, Wash. The story of a family’s struggle to stay together when they learn their young son has cancer.

Editorial Writing: Linda Valdez of The Arizona Republic in Phoenix. Editorials on illegal immigrants and the state’s flawed legal system.

Foreign Correspondence: “Mexico: Outside the Law,” Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan of The Washington Post in Washington, D.C. Exposé on Mexico’s criminal justice system and its impact on residents’ lives.

Public Service (circulation of 100,000 or greater): “Clemency in Illinois,” Staff of the Chicago Tribune. Comprehensive coverage of flaws in Illinois’ death penalty.

Public Service (circulation of less than 100,000): “Missionary Ridge Fire,” Staff of The Durango (Colo.) Herald. Extensive coverage of a fire that burned for 39 days and blackened 110 square miles of Colorado land.

Magazines

Magazine Writing: “The 9/11 Kid,” Jodie Morse of TIME Magazine. Story of a 12-year-old girl coming to terms with her father’s death in the attack on the World Trade Center.

Public Service in Magazine Journalism: “Complicity,” Staff of The Hartford (Conn.) Courant. An examination of Connecticut’s history and of prominent families and institutions and their link to slavery.

Magazine Investigative Reporting: “Look Who’s Cashing in At Indian Casinos,” Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele of TIME Magazine.

Art/Graphics

Photography Spot News: “Church of the Nativity: In the Center of the Siege,” Carolyn Cole of the Los Angeles Times. Exclusive photographs from inside the Bethlehem church where Palestinians had taken refuge in the face of advancing Israeli soldiers.

Photography Features: “Iowa’s County Fairs 2002,” Staff of The Des Moines (Iowa) Register. A photographic record of Iowa life captured through the state’s 100 county fairs.

Radio

Breaking News Reporting: “Minnesota Senate Race,” Minnesota Public Radio Newsroom in St. Paul, Minn. Breaking and follow-up coverage of the plane crash that killed U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone.

Investigative Reporting: “Day Care Criminals,” Steve Miller of WBBM Newsradio 780 in Chicago. Series of reports on day care home licensees who are convicted criminals.

Feature Reporting: “The Washington Opera Goes to Japan,” David Furst of WAMU 88.5 FM in Washington, D.C. Story of the Washington Opera’s first major international tour.

Documentaries: “We Were on Duty,” Richard Paul of Soundprint in Laurel, Md. Story of the attack on the Pentagon in the words and emotions of those who were there and lived to describe it.

Public Service in Radio Journalism: “A Place for Me: Adoption and Foster Care,” Vincent Duffy and Mark Urycki of WKSU-FM in Kent, Ohio. A 10-day series about issues affecting adoption and foster care in Ohio.

Television

Breaking News Coverage (Network/Top 25 Markets): “Senator Wellstone’s Death,” KSTP-TV Eyewitness News Staff in St. Paul, Minn. Comprehensive and timely coverage of the U.S. senator’s death in a plane crash and the campaign that followed.

Breaking News Coverage (All other markets): “Elizabeth Smart Kidnapping,” Staff of KSL-TV in Salt Lake City. Coverage of the kidnapping of the 14-year-old from her home in the early morning hours.

Investigative Reporting (Network/Top 25 Markets): “Evidence of Errors,” Anna Werner, David Raziq, Chris Henao and Mike T. Devlin of KHOU-TV in Houston. An investigation that discovered an entire police crime lab had for years been making mistakes that sent the innocent to prison and perhaps even to death row.

Investigative Reporting (All other markets): “Friends in High Places,” Phil Williams and Bryan Staples of WTVF-TV in Nashville, Tenn. A seven-month investigation into how Tennessee Gov. Don Sundquist’s closest supporters landed millions of dollars in state contracts.

Feature Reporting (All other markets): “Traffic of Tears,” Leta Hong Fincher and Kathleen Schrader of Voice of America Television in Washington, D.C. A compelling and rare look at China and the victims of cross-border trafficking.

Documentaries (Network/Top 25 Markets): “9/11,” CBS in New York. An exclusive, insider’s account of the World Trade Center attack.

Documentaries (All other markets): “Critical Condition,” Hagit Limor, Michael Benedic, Bob Morford and Phyllis Parker of WCPO-TV in Cincinnati. Investigation into area doctors who are woefully underpaid because of insurance company reimbursements and its ultimate affect on the quality of local health care.

Public Service in Television Journalism (Network/Top 25 Markets): “Prisoner of Progress,” Bob Arya and John Loboda of CLTV News in Chicago. A report on the overpopulation and rundown conditions of a Kane County (Ill.) jail.

Public Service in Television Journalism (All other markets): “Speak Up New York!” Matthew O’Neill, Justin Krebs, Eric Levine and Jon Alpert of Downtown Community Television Center in New York. A news broadcast designed to educate and engage New York youth in upcoming local and state elections.

Newsletter

Public Service in Newsletter Journalism: “WorldCom Holds Billions in Credits,” Jonathan Stern of The Telecom Manager’s Voice Report in Rockville, Md. The story that uncovered billions of dollars in fraudulent bookkeeping at WorldCom.

Research

Research About Journalism: “The Penalty is Death,” Marlin Shipman of University of Missouri Press in Columbia, Mo. A book on how the newspaper press has reported on the executions of women in the United States from 1847 to present.

Online Reporting

Deadline Reporting (Affiliated): “Mt. Hood Chopper Crash,” Staff of KGW.com in Portland, Ore. Breaking coverage of a military helicopter crash on Oregon’s Mt. Hood during a rescue effort in the spring of 2002.

Non-Deadline Reporting (Affiliated): “Enrique’s Journey,” Sonia Nazario and Don Bartletti of the Los Angeles Times. The story of a Honduran teen-ager’s repeated efforts to reunite with his mother in the United States.

Non-Deadline Reporting (Independent): “What’s Happening to Our Kids?” Staff of WebMD in Atlanta. Providing facts and reliable help for parents of children diagnosed with bipolar disorder, anxiety or depression.

Investigative Reporting (Affiliated): “Blood on the Rings,” Tom Farrey of ESPN.com. An investigation into allegations of various forms of abuse by the Iraqi Olympic Committee.

Investigative Reporting (Independent): “Making a Killing: The Business of War,” International Consortium of Investigative Journalists of the Center for Public Integrity in Washington, D.C. A series investigating the economics of conflict in the post-Cold War era and the groups who profit from the business of war.

Public Service in Online Journalism (Affiliated): “The Lure of Online Auctions,” Bob Sullivan and Mike Brunker of MSNBC.com in Redmond, Wash. Part of a continuing series on online consumer fraud.

Public Service in Online Journalism (Independent): “State Secrets: An Investigation of Political Party Money in the States,” Mary Jo Sylwester, Leah Rush, John Dunbar and Robert Moore of The Center for Public Integrity in Washington, D.C. A nationwide investigation of money in state politics.